Jesus, Our Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6)

Introduction

Attention

Over the next four weeks, we are going to explore a famous Scripture from the prophet Isaiah, Isaiah 9:6, and in particular four names that he gives the Messiah, this child given to us that we celebrate at Christmas time. The four names are Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. Today, we’re going to look at that first name and ask, “How is Jesus our Wonderful Counselor”?

Many of the jobs in my life have had a counseling aspect to them. Seven years as a Police Officer, where many times you are the counselor on the street, another seven years working as a counselor to people dealing with addiction and homelessness, and now in this position as a pastor.

One thing you learn quickly as a counselor is that people are messy. If you are not prepared for the messiness of people, you shouldn’t be in a counseling field.

When I was working as a Police Officer, someone called 911, and we went up to the scene. A man came to the window, saw me, and started speaking in Spanish. I said, “I’m sorry, I don’t speak Spanish.” He said, “Yes, you do.” I said, “No, I don’t.” He said, “Yes, you do!” I said, “No, I don’t!” He said, “Well, I don’t need help then.” I said, “Good,” and we drove off.

Now, I like to think that I helped him forget his problems because I didn’t speak Spanish, but in reality, I wasn’t a wonderful counselor in that moment. I was just glad he didn’t want my help.

So often times, we are running to counsel from all different places. We look to friends, books, find something on the internet, we are looking for counsel. Wouldn’t it be good if we had a Wonderful Counselor with us all of the time? The Bible says we do.

Let’s take a look at Isaiah 9:1-7.

Scripture Reading

Isaiah 9:1–7 CSB

1 Nevertheless, the gloom of the distressed land will not be like that of the former times when he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. But in the future he will bring honor to the way of the sea, to the land east of the Jordan, and to Galilee of the nations. 2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness. 3 You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. The people have rejoiced before you as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils. 4 For you have shattered their oppressive yoke and the rod on their shoulders, the staff of their oppressor, just as you did on the day of Midian. 5 For every trampling boot of battle and the bloodied garments of war will be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.

Pray

Who is Isaiah?

Isaiah is a prophet. Prophets were people who often spoke as a mouthpiece of God. With the writing prophets, they wrote these words down as God inspired them to speak. They spoke as God led them.

The Spirit of God filled these men to write the Word of God down. For instance, the prophet Ezekiel explained his experience by saying this in Ezekiel 2:2:

Ezekiel 2:2 CSB

2 As he spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and I listened to the one who was speaking to me.

There was a supernatural God experience where the Spirit of God would manifest within them, they would hear from God, and they would share the Word of God to them with Israel through writing it down in Scripture.

The prophet Isaiah was one of these writing prophets. He lived in the 8th century BC, somewhere around 2,800 years ago. We know the dates of when he lived because of what was happening around him.

He lived in the during the reign of four kings of Judah: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. He did a lot of his ministry in the southern kingdom around Jerusalem, and he would deliver messages from God to the kings.

Isaiah’s role as a prophet was to call the nation of Israel back to faithfulness to God, and to warn them of sin and divine judgment.

Isaiah writes with incredible precision about the coming Messiah. He tells us about the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53, a chapter that is so precise about Jesus that it is sometimes called the gospel of the Old Testament.

What is Isaiah describing in Isaiah 9:1-7?

Today, we are in Isaiah 9. The names in the book of Isaiah are important. In Isaiah 8, we read of a son of Isaiah named Maher-shalal-hash-baz, which means “Speeding to the Plunder, Hurrying to the Spoil.” This name symbolized the impending invasion coming from the Assyrian army.

Another son of Isaiah was named, Shear-jashub, which means “a remnant will return,” symbolized the hope of restoration for Judah. Even the name Isaiah means, “the salvation of Yahweh,” and Isaiah shows us a theme of God’s salvation in his prophecies.

Now in Isaiah 9, if you know where you are in this book, Isaiah has just told us a name for the Messiah earlier in chapter 7, where he says in Isaiah 7:14 that, “Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: See, the virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.” This son is named, “Immanuel,” which means “God with us.” This son born of a virgin will be God with us.

Now, when we think of names today, they don’t have this big significance. Many times, names are an identifier, primarily a means to separate one person from another. This person is Jason, this person is Ken, and so on. We may pick a name because we think it sounds nice, or it has some family connection.

However, in the book of Isaiah, these biblical names have deep, spiritual and prophetic meaning. The names had theological meaning and represented part of the story of God’s plan. This Messiah that is coming, he will be born of a virgin, and he will be Immanuel, God with us.

As we look in Isaiah 9, there are a lot of important things to see as we get up to verse 6. At the end Isaiah 9:1:

Isaiah 9:1 CSB

1 Nevertheless, the gloom of the distressed land will not be like that of the former times when he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. But in the future he will bring honor to the way of the sea, to the land east of the Jordan, and to Galilee of the nations.

Look at the last part of verse 1, “Galilee of the nations.” Here is the impact of the Messiah. He will be important for Israel, but his reach will be far beyond Israel. He is coming not just for Israel, but also for the Gentiles, for the nations. The Messiah is coming for the world.

As we get into verse 2, people are going to be awakened from darkness to light.

Notice something in these next verses: Everything is written in the past tense. Isaiah 9:2-4:

Isaiah 9:2–4 CSB

2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness. 3 You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. The people have rejoiced before you as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils. 4 For you have shattered their oppressive yoke and the rod on their shoulders, the staff of their oppressor, just as you did on the day of Midian.

The people “HAVE SEEN” a great light, a light “HAS DAWNED,” you “HAVE ENLARGED” the nation and increased its joy. The people “HAVE REJOICED” before you, you “HAVE SHATTERED” their oppressive yoke.

What is the prophet saying? The prophet is saying, “This thing I’m seeing from God in the future, this is certain. This is something that is already done. God has done it. This will be accomplished and is accomplished by God. This is for sure. God has the victory.

Look at what happens in Isaiah 9:6:

Isaiah 9:6 CSB

6 For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

A child will be born for us: This Messiah that’s coming, there will be a physical nature to him. He will be flesh and blood. He will be born of a human, a human being. He will be a child born for us, but then now listen to this:

A son will be given to us: God will give a Son to us. God is giving the Son to us! This is not only a physical, flesh and blood baby, but this is a Son from God to us.

Now, who is the us? It’s all of us, but Isaiah is speaking to Israel. This is a son to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. This child born to us, this son give to us, he will rule. Power over the nations is his.

We get to the four names: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. We’ll walk through each one of these names over the next four weeks, and it’s going to be incredible to see the Messiah in each one of these names.

In Isaiah 9:7, the Messiah “will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever.” The Messiah coming will rule, the government will be on his shoulders, and he will rule with justice and righteousness.

What does Isaiah mean by “Wonderful Counselor”?

What does Isaiah mean when he calls the Messiah, “Wonderful Counselor”? This is a critical question to ask. Why is that? Because a lot of times, when you’re reading the Bible, you tend to read it with 2023 glasses on. You read these particular verses, and you understand them from a 2023 perspective.

You can’t do that, because Isaiah, when he wrote this, is not in 2023 San Diego. Isaiah is in 700-something BC Jerusalem, Israel. When he is describing “Wonderful” and “Counselor,” what does he mean by that?

When we hear that someone today is a “Wonderful Counselor,” we just think he must be really good at his job. We think of a counselor as going down to a therapist’s office or some other counseling professional, and if they are wonderful, then they are just really good at what they do.

When I googled the word “Wonderful,” it gave a definition of: inspiring delight, pleasure, or admiration; extremely good; marvelous. It gave an example sentence of:” They all think she's wonderful."

Well, that’s nice, but that’s not anything near to what Isaiah means when he says, “Wonderful Counselor.”

Wonderful

First, the term “Wonderful”: Whenever you see the Hebrew word for “wonder,” that Hebrew word is almost always connected with God. It is connected to the supernatural, to the miraculous works of God.

For instance, look at Ex. 34:10:

Exodus 34:10 CSB

10 And the Lord responded, “Look, I am making a covenant. In the presence of all your people I will perform wonders that have never been done in the whole earth or in any nation. All the people you live among will see the Lord’s work, for what I am doing with you is awe-inspiring.

The term “wonder” is directly connected to God. God is making a covenant. God will perform wonders. What God will do, his wonders, will be awe-inspiring.

Frequently in the Old Testament, “wonders” will be connected with the word for “signs,” using the term “signs and wonders.” In Exodus 7:3, God will multiply his “signs and wonders in the land of Egypt.” In Psalm 135:9, God “sent signs and wonders against you, Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his officials.” In Jeremiah 32:20 God “performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt and still do today, both in Israel and among all mankind.” Wonders is part of “signs and wonders” which come from God.

Look at what it says about “wonder” in Psalm 72:18:

Psalm 72:18 CSB

18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does wonders.

Wonders do not come from anyone else. There is no one else in the Old Testament that is spoken of as wonderful. David was not “wonderful.” Abraham was not “wonderful.” Moses was not “wonderful.” Solomon was not “wonderful.” Only God alone does wonders. Only God alone is “wonderful.” You see it also in Psalm 86:10 “For you are great and perform wonders; you alone are God.”

What about Isaiah? How does Isaiah use the term “wonderful”? Look at Isaiah 25:1:

Isaiah 25:1 CSB

1 Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you. I will praise your name, for you have accomplished wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.

God accomplishes wonders. Also see this in Isaiah 29:14 where God confounds with “wonder after wonder.”

So when Isaiah says that this child given to us, this baby born, when he says his name will be “Wonderful Counselor,” this is not just someone who is really good. This Counselor is full of the divine power and majesty of God, there is something supernatural, something miraculous about this child, something full of the divine, supernatural power that comes from God alone. He is not like any other man. He is full of the miraculous power and wonder of God. Unlike anyone else, there is God in the Messiah.

Counselor

What about the word “Counselor”? How would Isaiah understand a counselor? Now, today we understand counselor as perhaps a mid level profession, something you go to school for, get some training, and get a professional position where you help people with their mental health and relational issues. Maybe you give them some career advice, and you help people cope with life and get through it, hopefully helping them make some helpful decisions.

A counselor in Isaiah’s time is a bit different. Counselors were connected with royalty. They were typically advisors to kings. They were valued for their wisdom and understanding, and sometimes had a spiritual role, as even a prophet like Isaiah or Daniel would come in to the king and give spiritual counsel.

We often see in Scripture, “the king and his counselors.” For instance, in Ezra 7:14 your read of “the king and his seven counselors.” In Esther 1:21, “The king and his counselors.” In Job 3:14 “the kings and counselors of the earth”.

Now, when you consider that Isaiah has called the Messiah, Immanuel, God with us, that he is Wonderful, someone full of the supernatural power of God, you get into an interesting conundrum with Isaiah. Because Isaiah says this in Isaiah 40:14:

Isaiah 40:14 CSB

14 Who did he consult? Who gave him understanding and taught him the paths of justice? Who taught him knowledge and showed him the way of understanding?

When Isaiah is saying that the physical child born and given to us is a Wonderful Counselor, this cannot simply be a human being who gives this extraordinary advice. A human will never give counsel like God. A human cannot teach God anything, a human cannot show God the way of understanding. Wisdom and understanding come from him.

Isaiah describes the Messiah this way a few chapters after Isaiah 9 in Isaiah 11:2:

Isaiah 11:2 CSB

2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.

This Wonderful Counselor, a man with the supernatural power of God, will have the Spirit of God on him, he will have the power of God’s wisdom and understanding, he will have his counsel and strength. For Isaiah to say this, and for this to make sense within his understanding of God, it is best to take him quite literally when he says that the Messiah will be Immanuel, God with us.

I want to look at this through three questions. The first question is,

How is Jesus the fulfillment of the Wonderful Counselor?

When Jesus comes into his ministry, he is often called Rabbi, which means teacher. Peter calls him Rabbi in Mark 11:21, Nathaniel calls him Rabbi in John 1:49, Nicodemus calls him Rabbi in John 3:2. But that’s not good enough for him to be the Wonderful Counselor. There have been plenty of rabbis, but that doesn’t make them wonderful counselors.

It is the way that he teaches, the power that comes through his teaching, his counsel. There has to be some kind of supernatural, miraculous God power that comes through his counsel. He has to counsel and have wisdom like God. When Jesus teaches, does he teach like a rabbi, or does he teach like God in the flesh, with power and authority?

You see this with the reaction of people around Jesus. Look at Mark 1:27:

Mark 1:27 CSB

27 They were all amazed, and so they began to ask each other, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”

Or look at Matt. 7:28-29:

Matthew 7:28–29 CSB

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 because he was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.

The teaching of Jesus was not like any ordinary man. When he would teach, demons would flee, and people were restored.

Sermon on the Mount

But what’s interesting about Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, which is the context of Matt. 7:28-29, Jesus doesn’t teach like a rabbi. For instance, a rabbi would say, “Okay, this commandment says this, “Do not commit adultery.” So you don’t want to do that, that’s important. A rabbi would teach something from the Scriptures and explain why it’s important to obey.

Jesus doesn’t teach that way. He doesn’t speak like someone who is interpreting the Law. He speaks like someone who WROTE the Law. He says in Matthew 5:21–22 “You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder... But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother or sister will be subject to judgment.” He teaches like, “When I wrote this, this is what it meant.”

He does that again in Matthew 5:27–28 “You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. 28 But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Jesus says, “Here is the Law, and this is the intent, the motivation behind the Law. He explains it like the Author of the Law.

Nicodemus

Jesus often taught in ways that were perplexing for the rabbis. When you look at John 3, Nicodemus couldn’t figure out Jesus’ teaching. Now, Nicodemus was a top rabbi. He was a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews, and Jesus calls him “a teacher of Israel.” Jesus tells him, “You must be born again,” and Nicodemus can’t figure this out. He says, “You mean I have to re-enter into my mother’s womb?” Jesus tells him in John 3:6–7“Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again.”

Samaritan Woman

But a really interesting example of the Wonderful Counsel of Jesus is his interaction with the woman at the well, the Samaritan woman. The council he gives to her is a supernatural event. He doesn’t just give her advice. He exposes things in her life. He looks into her life and starts telling her things about herself that she hadn’t told anyone.

She approached this well, and here is a stranger at the well, waiting for her. As she gets water, this man, this prophet, starts telling her things about her life. He looks into her soul, and it brings her to a place to ask about the Messiah, to which Jesus says in John 4:26 “I, the one speaking to you, am he.” She gets so excited, she leaves and tells everyone in her town, and look at what it says in John 4:39:

John 4:39 CSB

39 Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.”

The Wonderful Counselor peers into her soul, exposes things about her life, and says, “I know you. I know who you are. I will counsel you. I will guide you.”

Now, I might be concerned to tell everyone this man knows everything I ever did. But here is the thing: Jesus knows how to get our attention. Jesus knows what is happening in your soul at any moment. Your friends don’t know that. Your family doesn’t know that. But Jesus knows exactly how to reach you, how to speak into your life.

Jesus’ counsel comes in such a way, at such a precise moment in time, it comes with a purpose and a plan. Jesus, God in the flesh, God with us, knows how to get your attention, and he will reach you and meet you right at the nick of time.

Jesus Fulfills the Wonderful Counselor

How does Jesus fulfill the Wonderful Counselor? He fulfills through his teaching and wisdom. He fulfills by counseling in times of need. He says in Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

He counsels morally and ethically, sharing the greatest commandment, telling us in Mark 12:30–31“30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. 31 The second is, Love your neighbor as yourself.”

He teaches with prophetic insight, telling us about the things to come. He gives spiritual counsel to Nicodemus and the Samaritan Woman.

He counsels through his actions, as he takes the role of a servant in John 13, pours water into a basin, and begins to wash the feet of his disciples, the feet of men who are about to run away from him at the cross, he counsels through his love for his people.

Jesus knows you. He knows your life. He speaks into your soul. He counsels you with his love. He is a Wonderful Counselor.

There is no counselor like Jesus. There is no one who can look into your soul.

People try. Since they can’t look into your soul, they try to invent things that can. I was reading this week about the engagement loop in social media.

The engagement loop in social media is designed through psychological principles to keep you stuck on the screen for as long as possible.

It starts with some kind of notification on your phone or some way to loop you in. It gets you to start scrolling. When you scroll, they want you to have some kind of reward, something that gets your attention, gives you a dopamine rush, get you to invest in the platform by commenting or liking something, and that prompts you to start scrolling again. They designed this after a slot machine.

This is why we don’t want humans to peer into the things we like, the things in our soul. Often times, they use this information in a way to exploit us or take advantage of us.

But when Jesus peers into your soul, it is not like that. Jesus exposes things in our life for our good. He reaches us right on time. He shows us his love as a Wonderful Counselor.

Apply

Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor.

We’ve seen Jesus as the Wonderful Counselor.

How can one live under Jesus’ wonderful counsel?

There is one cannot get away from in Christianity. A life with Jesus is supernatural. It’s powerful. There is an experience to the Christian life. God works in you and through you.

Jesus says this to his disciples in John 14:15-17:

John 14:15–17 CSB

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. 17 He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.

Now, if you walk through that, there is a love that you have for Jesus. You are in his Word, as you seek to keep his commands.

But Jesus loves us enough not to leave us alone. He has said in Hebrews 13:5 “I will never leave you or abandon you.” God is with you.

He loves you enough not to leave you alone, but to give his people the Spirit of God in their life, a Wonderful Counselor. There is truth in this world, and that truth only comes from Jesus Christ.

The Counselor that you have from Jesus is a supernatural Person in your life. God is with you. Look at John 14:26:

John 14:26 CSB

26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.

If we want to live under the Wonderful Counsel of God in Jesus Christ, it starts through a desperate reliance on him. It starts with Jesus and ends with Jesus. As we walk with him in prayer, as we learn from him in his Word, as we engage with our church community, with other people filled with the Spirit of God, there is a Counselor from God that walks with you, that will lead you to Jesus, that will show you the way.

There are a lot of people that want your attention in this world, but there is only one Wonderful Counselor. Rely on Jesus. Trust him.

A hymn at Christmas is the song, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” The second verse in that hymn goes:

O come, O Wisdom from on high,

who ordered all things mightily;

to us the path of knowledge show

and teach us in its ways to go.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel

shall come to you, O Israel.

Here’s the beauty of Christmas. God has given us his Son, and he wants to be your Wonderful Counselor.

A counselor often helps with problems. Our Wonderful Counselor does more than just help us with our problems. He took on our problems at the cross. He paid for our sin problem, and he wants to be your Wonderful Counselor.

Christmas is about joy, it’s a time to rejoice, because God has not left us alone, he is with us, he counsels us, and brings us to faith in Jesus. Run to the Wonderful Counselor. Follow him, listen to him, and trust him.

Conclusion

How is Jesus the fulfillment of the Wonderful Counselor?

How can one live under Jesus’ wonderful counsel?

Conclude

Prayer

Communion

We will have communion, remembering Jesus and his sacrifice for us. Meditate on the Lord and where your heart is with him.

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 CSB

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!